Mischief in the Library
by Slytherin Cat
Summary: A meeting in the Library during Year 7 for the rebellion. The goal? Making the Carrows lives hell.


Disclaimer: Nothing belongs to me, no matter how sad that is :(

This OS is written for the 'Stretch Your Limits' Competition (Round 2), level medium and for the Dumbledore's Army Competition, for the character Terry Boot.

I hope you like it and please review :p

**Mischief in the Library**

This year was definitely the worst they had ever faced. And that was saying something, especially when one considered what had already happened in the last six years at Hogwarts. It had begun on Halloween seven years ago, when Professor Quirrell came running in the Great hall and broke the lighthearted ambiance from the feast by saying a troll had invaded the school.

Rationally, Terry knew there was no way the troll could have gotten in Hogwarts on his own, because trolls were too stupid and anyway even if it had managed to find the entrance there still was the matter of the wards protecting the castle, keeping the students safe. But at the time he was only eleven and though Ravenclaw was the house of the smarts, it didn't mean he was perfect at the time. And so he did like everyone else. He screamed and panicked.

From that moment on he could see that something was up within Gryffindor's house. The brown-haired wizard didn't know (yet) what it was, but if there was a reason that got him put in Ravenclaw it was his love for solving mysteries and knowing answers.

Then there was the mysterious loss of point that made the Trio pariahs, and rumors were flying again about the Boy-Who-Lived supposed powers. Seriously, nobody seemed to be able to agree on anything where Harry Potter and his two faithful sidekicks were concerned and Terry heard everything, from the "he's just a fake" theory to the "you don't understand, it's just a trick so that the Dark Lords underestimate him" theory.

With all those different opinions, making his mind was quite difficult, though it couldn't be argued that the dark-haired Gryffindor had a saving people problem and a luck he didn't wish on anyone. He decided to adopt a wait and see approach for this problem and in the meantime he would try to collect as much information about the Gryffindor Trio as he could.

Over the next years, Terry noticed that the 'Golden Trio' as the three Gryffindors were called (no matter how hard he looked he couldn't find where exactly the nickname came from) were involved in many more mysteries. For a so-called safe school, Hogwarts sure let a lot of danger happen.

First there were the strange petrifactions of students all over the school that mysteriously stopped after a student was kidnapped. The student came back safely, the petrifactions stopped and Potter spent a night in the Hospital wing. As usual he was in the middle of it, and he was even accused of being Slytherin's heir when it was discovered he was a Parseltongue.

From what Terry had found in the Library's book, it was unlikely but since Potter was from an old Pureblood line his ancestors may have married with a descendant of the Founder without knowing it or keeping it secret. Though his friend Anthony was convinced Harry was guilty, Terry'd rather believe the proofs and for now there were none indicating that the Gryffindor was involved in any way in the happenings of the year.

The next year Dementors invaded the school because an ex-Death Eater had escaped from Azkaban. Though they seemed to have an obsession with Potter (again, the guy really didn't have any luck), it was still a danger to the whole school, especially considering they attacked during a Quidditch match. Terry himself wasn't there but he had heard what had happened from his Quidditch-obsessed friend and he couldn't believe Harry had been the only one to fall from his broom.

Add to that the werewolf that taught them (not that he had anything against Professor Lupin, but what if the man forgot to take his potion?) and that year really wasn't safe either.

In fourth year the danger had been obvious. Really the Triwizard Tournament, where competitors regularly died… Why reinstate it? However the danger, for once, only concerned a few people. Terry and his friends had for once the time to research the strange happenings of the previous years and what they found was scary. From what they had heard from the Gryffindors and some of the adults, Voldemort wasn't truly dead and he was trying to come back.

Normally, Terry wouldn't have even thought of believing this but considering all the crazy stuff that had already happened… Since every time Potter had somehow found himself in the middle of it, well even when he didn't have all the facts he was more inclined to believe Potter who had first-hand experience than the Prophet.

So when Potter came back bloody at the end of the Third Task, claiming that He was back, Terry had believed him. From that moment on it was just common sense to join him, because no matter what had happened to him, Potter had always survived so it was logical to side with the stubborn black-haired teen.

Of course the Ministry didn't share this point of view, and fearful of the panic a confirmed return of the Dark Lord would bring, decided to do everything in their power to deny it, even if it meant they would slander a fifteen year-old teenager and an old man who had saved them from the previous Dark Lord.

But even this wasn't enough and they decided they had to interfere at Hogwarts. When he saw who would teach them Defense Against the Dark Arts this year, Terry knew immediately this year would be the worst. He was right of course, especially when the new 'High Inquisitor' created decree after decree restricting the students' freedom.

But this year was also the first year where he actually did something right instead of lamenting about how everything was wrong, where he acted instead of only searching and where he proved that it wasn't because he wasn't a Gryffindor that he couldn't be brave.

Like many of his fellow Housemates, he joined Potter's DA and if at first it was because he wanted to actually learn DADA, it quickly became a mean to rebel against Umbridge's dictatorship. Though he wasn't close to Potter, he acknowledged the other's power and his place as their untold leader. He had been a bit disappointed not to be amongst the 'Ministry Six', but he knew that the work they did at Hogwarts had been just as important. Plus, the Ravenclaw honestly thought he wouldn't have been ready to battle Death Eater in a life or death situation and had no problem admitting it.

But this year was their year. It was the most difficult one, what with Dumbledore dead, Death Eater-Snape being the Headmaster and the Carrows teaching DADA (or as the students secretly called it: How to practice the Dark Arts). Slytherin was favored and Gryffindor hated. Ravenclaw was watched and Hufflepuff mocked. Not many people knew of his allegiance, but that didn't mean people didn't remember how he had watched what Potter did and how he had been one of the first to believe the Gryffindor about the Dark Lord's return.

It was because of this he couldn't afford to have much contact with known member of the Resistance aside from the meetings in the Room of Requirement. Ginny Weasley and surprisingly (or not that much when he actually remembered that the boy had been one of the first to get out of the hospital wing after the Ministry Battle) Neville Longbottom had taken over what was left of the DA and they tried to lead a resistance against the Dark Lord's rule (the megalomaniac wizard had actually place a taboo on his own name) and to protect the first year and the Half blood, as they were the one who got it the worst since they often didn't understand why they shouldn't do one thing or another.

But today was a special day, not because they had finally managed to spike the Carrows' drinks, not even because they managed to break a young Half blood from Ravenclaw out of the donjon and gave him the means to escape from Hogwarts, but because all the Death Eaters living in the school had been summoned by their Lord.

Still, that didn't mean they were free to do what they wanted or that they could take over the school. Even though the old Professors had been left behind and didn't support the Dark Lord they had been bound for the day by the Headmaster not to act against him (an old law that had been totally forgotten but that Snape had unearthed. He was taking advantage of it as much as he could since it was the only way he could get Dumbledore's followers to acknowledge his authority).

The portraits were too bound to the Headmaster of the school and had to report anything they saw if he asked for it. Since the resistance didn't actually know what he asked his spies to report, they tried to spent as little time as they could where there were portraits and when there were some, not to talk of anything 'interesting' in front of them.

This was the reason why they had chosen to meet in the Library when they couldn't get to the Room of Requirement (plus if they kept disappearing all the time the Death Eaters would suspect something… And the last thing they wanted was for them to discover their hiding place).It also had the benefit to provide them with the excuse of doing research or homework and to simply pass hidden messages in the books they used. It wasn't the most convenient method but it always was better than ending up in 'detention' (meaning being the test subject at the next Defense class) or trying to pass messages in the corridors.

That the Professors couldn't help them didn't mean they weren't going to turn a blind eye to everything they saw that could annoy the Carrows. Mrs. Pince, for instance, ignored their group no matter how much noise they made in her precious Library as long as they took care of the books. Plus, if asked she could always say she hadn't seen anything since she never looked at them.

This meeting was also the first one that hadn't been called by Ginny, Neville or Luna, who were the leaders of their group, but by Terry himself. It was also the first meeting where everyone would be present and that wouldn't happen on the seventh floor. Usually Terry just helped them plan whatever it was that needed to be done and lent a hand when it was needed. As a Ravenclaw he knew particularly well how to be unnoticed and the secret passages (they often could be found in old books in the Library if you knew where to look. Some where even noted in their Common Room if they could shorten the paths to some classrooms).

"What did you want Terry?" Neville asked, voicing everyone's interrogations. The first meeting had been messy, with everyone talking at once but by the second it had become much more ordered.

"Well as you know the Carrows are gone for now and Snape's not here either. I know we can't take over the school, because the teachers can't help us and if the Dark Lord decide to send his troops here we're all dead, but I thought we could use the opportunity to try and plan something."

"What do you propose we do?" Hannah asked, clearly interested. Susan, her best friend, echoes the question a few seconds later. She had lost the last of her family earlier that year, if there was anything she could do to bother those murderers who had taken over their school she would.

"Well I know some of you still have contact with the outside world. I'm sure the twins would be willing to help. I think the House Elves would be ready to help us too. They hate the Carrows and apparently haven't been ordered not to attack. They aren't considered like a threat."

Someone laughed in the background at that. Everyone around that table knew how stupid this belief was, especially since Ginny had shared how Dobby had able to get around his master's orders in order to warn Harry of danger to come. The little creatures only had to convince themselves their actions would help their masters (not that the House Elves living in Hogwarts had any) and they would be able to do almost anything, even if that action went against what their master believed in. Only a direct order could dissuade them, and even then it had to be carefully worded for the Elves were experts in finding loopholes. Of course all this worked in favor of the rebellion.

Terry could see the Gryffindors were berating themselves for not thinking of this earlier when there was no way anyone would blame them when they already did so much for Hogwarts' students. Knowing that saying something would only made them feel worse, he just went on.

"I also found those really nifty spells in a book a few days ago. Some make the receiver sick, other make them lose their hairs, itch everywhere, say the most random thing at the most inappropriate moment… That kind of thing. Inconspicuous, and they cannot be tracked back to us. Mostly they'll just appear to be a coincidence."

"I like it" Ginny had a feral grin on her lips, and even Luna had an unusually violent glint in her eyes. Neville, though he looked really interested by the idea, was torn.

"I like it too, but there's just one problem with this. How do you propose we actually manage to get those spells on the Carrows. I don't think we'll just be able to catch them unaware enough for the spell to stick."

"That's where Luna and Anthony will come in."

"We will?" Came Anthony surprised voice. The blonde-haired Ravenclaw didn't speak often and was even more discreet than Terry.

"Of course. You two are the best at slipping around. Plus now there's no one guarding the Great Hall, it'll be easy. You see I have found another spell that will make all of this possible. As I'm sure you noticed by now, the Carrows and Snape are always sitting at the same places on the teachers' table. Well this spell allows for a surface to retain a spell for a short amount of time, meaning a few hours at most. You cast that spell on the bench and when they sit they'll be hit by the spell. They won't even be able to notice it, as the spell in itself doesn't hurt. The best part is that once the 'charge', so to speak, has been used, every trace of magic disappear from the object"

Everyone could hear the excitement in his voice, and his enthusiasm was contagious. Finally they were going to be doing something to fight back.

"I've written everything you'll need to know about those spells on here. From what I've read they're pretty easy and when I tried I think I got them right quickly enough. So, are you in?"

"Of course I'm in, mate! You can count on me anytime with a plan like that. Getting caught would be so worth it if I even catch a look at that old hag hairless" Anthony's answer was much more exuberant than Luna's, who just nodded and went back to staring at the ceiling like it was the most interesting thing she had ever seen.

Neville and Ginny shared a long look and finally nodded. Terry let go of a breath he didn't even know he held. If these two agreed, everyone would support him and his plan, making this so much easier.

"I'll go ask my brothers to give us some help." With those words Ginny left the table, her feet leading her slowly toward the Come-And-Go Room where she would be able to access a Floo and hopefully talk to her brothers.

"Hannah, Susan, I think there's some plants we could use to… I don't know, maybe block the entrance to the Carrows' rooms and Dumbledore's office (everyone refused to admit it was Snape's). Do you think Professor Sprout would mind?"

"That's an excellent idea Nev', and you know as well as we do that if it can bother those horrible Death Eaters she'll be all for it"

Neville and the two Hufflepuff girls got up and went to leave, most probably to go get those plants. As he left their sight, Neville gave a proud look to Terry as he saw the Ravenclaw giving a task to everyone in the resistance.

Feeling the other's eyes on him, Terry raised his head and smiled at the leaving trio. Surrounded by his peers, trying to do something right, acting for once, the brown-haired wizard knew his efforts had been and would be appreciated and it felt great. Maybe he hadn't participated in any battle yet, but he was doing something against the Dark Lord and his reign, and no matter how small this action was it was something.

At this very moment, Terry felt for the first time as if he too could be a hero.


End file.
